Donald Trump critic Joe Scarborough is saying some things lately that all those Democrats at his network are certainly not happy to hear acknowledged aloud on MSNBC. Earlier this week, he called out mainstream outlets for failing to ask some hard questions about how the Christine Blasey Ford letter was leaked at the strategically perfectly moment for Senate Democrats desperate to delay the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh. On Thursday, he did something even more problematic: He publicly admitted that the Democrats’ unfair treatment of Kavanaugh is turning out to be a “disaster” for them.
While Scarborough noted that, as Donald Trump’s election demonstrated, polling data four weeks out from the vote doesn’t mean a candidate’s a lock, he stressed that anyone honestly looking at the numbers after the shameless smear campaign against Kavanaugh must acknowledge that it’s turned out to be a political “disaster” for Senate Democrats, who need to win all seven of the true toss up seats in November to gain the 51-seat majority. As of right now, the chances of that happening are very, very slim, with polls trending toward Republicans in key states, including Tennessee and Arizona.
WATCH (h/t Allahpundit):
As Scarborough and his guests note, the polling data for key Senate seats is not looking good for Democrats. As The Daily Wire reported Thursday, the so-called “Kavanaugh Effect” appears to be having a major impact in the red and purple states. If the Democrats fail to win any of the “toss ups” seats, according to Real Clear Politics’ pollsters (who give Democrats 44 safe seats and Republicans 49), they will not win the Senate. Two of those seats are open seats in Tennessee and Arizona, both of which have moved dramatically in Republicans’ direction post-Kavanaugh:
Tennessee’s open seat is one of those “toss ups,” but surging support for Republican Marsha Blackburn is moving it rapidly in the direction of “leaning” Republican. Democrat Phil Bredesen once enjoyed a five-point lead, but after the Kavanaugh chaos, multiple polls show Blackburn leading by a significant margin. A Fox News poll found Blackburn ahead by 5 points last week, while a CBS News/YouGov poll found her leading by 8 points. A New York Times Upshot poll this week found Blackburn ahead by 14 points.
Bredesen created a stir when he came out in support of Kavanaugh before the vote. Many have interpreted it as a political ploy, with a recent undercover video suggesting as much, but it appears to not have worked in his favor, with many Democrats expressing disgust at the move.
Arizona’s open seat has also recently started trending in the Republican’s direction. A recent ABC 15/OH Predictive Insights poll found Republican Martha McSally leading Democrat Kyrsten Sinema by 6 points. But another recent poll by CBS News/YouGov found Sinema ahead by 3 and a Fox News poll gave the Democrat a 2-point lead.
Earlier this week, Scarborough called out mainstream outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal over their biased coverage of the Kavanaugh story.
“What New York Times reporter, what Washington Post reporter, was assigned a story by their editors to go see what really happened with Dianne Feinstein, and ask Dianne Feinstein and her staff the sort of questions that would have happened if the Republican Party had done the same thing?” Scarborough asked. “Not one.”
Related: Morning Joe: Why Didn’t Media Ask Feinstein’s Staff About Leak Of Ford’s Letter?